Getting money back from the taxman is not something that regularly befalls a person, especially if the amount is around R150 000 – just by transferring pension across borders. But that’s exactly what you can expect if you transfer your South African pension funds to your UK pension.

Give your pension a boost

Look at Gordon Smith for example. A few years ago Gordon emigrated to the UK. He totally forgot about his South African pension because he always planned to return to South Africa after retirement. But then Gordon wisely decided to talk to cashkows.com about his finances and discovered that he could benefit from the reinvestment of his South African pension in the UK. This advantage comes with a tax incentive from HRMC  which is designed to compensate those who move their pension to the UK.

Two years ago Gordon’s South African pension was worth R2 638 113 (£175 874). After he received advice, he decided to move his pension. He paid R796 721 (£53 115) tax to SARS and transferred the net amount of R1 841 392 (£122 759) to the UK. He then reinvested the full amount in his UK pension fund and the result was a value increase from £122 759 to £191 812. In sterling terms Gordon increased the original gross value of his South African pension by £15 938 – simply by moving his funds from South Africa to the UK.

At the time of the transfer, the GBP/ZAR was 15:00 and Gordon paid 45% tax in the UK.

Returning to South Africa

Gordon’s plans to return to South Africa after retirement might seem like a spoke in the wheel, but on the contrary it provides further benefits. His UK pension will be transferred to an approved foreign scheme – still in sterling – which will enable him to receive his pension tax free in South Africa.

Therefore, if you live or work in the UK and still have retirement funds in South Africa, it will be wise to consider this route.

Move your money today!

To see if you can benefit from transferring your pension to the UK, please visit our website at www.cashkows.com, leave us your contact details and we will contact you for a free consultation.

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